Global Capital & Leadership Forum

At a moment of profound geopolitical realignment, this forum convenes senior leaders across finance, law, and policy to examine how shifting alliances, energy transitions, and the repositioning of the Gulf as a global capital hub are redrawing the map of international business and what it demands of financial leadership today.


Hosted at Akin in partnership with ABANA.co

Register Now

Cost:  FWA Members: $175 | Non-Members: $225

 

Registration closed at 11:59 pm EST on May 4, 2026


Agenda*

*Subject to change.


Tuesday, May 5 - Virtual Lunch Panel

VAWS  |  12 West 39th Street  |  New York NY 10018


12 PM

Welcome and Opening Remarks

.

  • Albana Theka, President, Financial Women's Association
  • Representatives from ABANA and Akin


12:05 – 12:45 PM

Sovereign Capital, Cross-Border Flows & Long-Term Strategy

Moderated Panel
How sovereign wealth funds and institutional investors are navigating uncertainty, and how capital is rerouting across the U.S., Middle East, and Asia amid geopolitical shifts.

.

  • Panelists TBA




Wednesday, May 6 - In-Person Morning Program

Hosted at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, 1 Bryant Pk, New York, NY


8:00 – 8:45 AM

Registration & Networking Breakfast

Light breakfast and coffee service


8:45 – 9:00 AM

Welcome & Framing Remarks

.

  • Albana Theka, President, Financial Women's Association
  • Representatives from ABANA and Akin


9:00 – 10:15 AM

The New Geopolitical Landscape: Capital, Conflict & Strategic Realignment

Keynote Address followed by Moderated Panel

How geopolitical tensions, strategic competition, and shifting alliances are reshaping capital flows, energy markets, and institutional decision-making worldwide and what resilient leadership looks like in this environment.


  • Anne Chapman, Managing Director, Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer Katcher
  • Katherine Krantz, Managing Director Strategy Research, BMO Capital Markets


10:15 – 10:30 PM

BREAK  ·  Networking

10:30 – 11:30 AM

Energy Security & the Transition Economy

Moderated Panel

Balancing national energy security imperatives with long-term climate commitments in an era of sustained volatility.

  • Conway Irwin, Senior Director, Investing in Energy, S&P Global Energy
  • Ravina Advani, Managing Director, Low Carbon Transition Group Head (Americas), BNP Paribas
  • Roman Kramarchuk, Head of Climate Markets and Policy Analytics, S&P Global Commodity Insights


11:30 – 12:15 PM

AI, Digital Infrastructure & Financial Resilience

Expert Briefing & Discussion

How artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and digital systems are strengthening and in some cases exposing financial infrastructure in an era of heightened volatility.

  • Doug Bloom, Managing Director, Deputy Head of Cyber, Information Security & Technology Risk, Morgan Stanley
  • Renee Lau, Principal FinServ Strategist, AWS


12:15 – 1:15 PM

Leadership: Women, Culture & Capital

Reflections on resilience, the importance of long-term partnerships in the United States and beyond, and the expanding role of women in leadership across the UAE.


  • Her Excellency Amna Almheiri, Consul General of the United Arab Emirates in New York


Followed by an Emirati Hospitality Experience

Gahwa (traditional Emirati coffee), Karak (traditional Emirati tea) and dates service. An expression of the UAE’s rich tradition of hospitality.


Speakers

The FWA is pleased to announce the following speakers for the Global Capital and Leadership Forum. These VIPs and experts have a breadth of experience spanning the financial industry and will share their insights on The MENA Capital Landscape: Risk, Resilience & the Road Ahead. Explore their bios below!


Ravina Advani

Ravina Advani is the Head of the Low Carbon Transition Group & Infrastructure Fund Coverage - Americas for BNP Paribas. In this role, Ravina is responsible for all client and sector activity across the bank’s energy practice, including Power & Utilities, Oil & Gas, Transition Minerals & Metals, and Chemicals.


Her role places her at the forefront of the Energy Transition, broadening and deepening BNP Paribas’ Transition and Sustainable Finance initiatives across her client base. Ravina serves as an ambassador and spokesperson for the bank, speaking with the media and at industry thought leadership events.


Prior to assuming her current position in late 2018, Ravina was part of the bank’s Power, Infrastructure & Project Finance North America team, where she was responsible for originating, structuring and executing financings across various asset classes, including power, oil & gas, transportation and social accommodation. Ravina has extensive experience with both domestic and international financings and has

served in lead roles on several of the bank's prominent arranging/ advisory mandates in the bank, private placement, bond and institutional loan markets.


Prior to joining BNP Paribas, Ravina worked at Orion Power Holdings, a power generation company, assisting with the company's trading and marketing efforts.


Ravina holds a BBA from the College of William and Mary with a concentration in Finance and a minor in French, and an MBA from Columbia Business School. In 2019, she received the Positive Impact Business certification from the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainable Finance.
Anne Chapman

Anne Chapman delivers strategic guidance to boards and management teams across a broad spectrum of topics, such as investor relations, public affairs, governance, activism defense, and board training. Drawing on over 25 years of experience in proxy voting and governance at Capital Group, she shares practical communication techniques for engaging shareholders and offers valuable perspectives gained from working with investment professionals and independent fund directors. Anne is known for her ability to translate complex governance issues into actionable solutions, making her a trusted advisor for boards navigating challenging shareholder dynamics and building strong relationships to win voting support.


Anne earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Redlands, where she developed a strong foundation in strategic management and organizational behavior, including international experience. Currently, she is based in San Francisco and Northern Utah, which enables her to engage with diverse professional networks in both regions. 
Diana Glassman

Diana Glassman is Director-Engagement at EOS at Federated Hermes Limited, which engages directors and senior executives on behalf of 70+ institutional investor clients with over $2.1 trillion in assets under advice on strategy, capital allocation and sustainability issues that impact long term financial value. She led the global team that won the 2024 International Corporate Governance Network’s Excellence in Stewardship Award and chairs her firm’s inclusion & innovation initiative. 

 

Diana is also an independent director of Helix Energy Solutions Group (NYSE: HLX), which facilitates the offshore energy transition to create value. She brings experience as a strategy consultant and public and private company executive in complex global businesses and possesses breadth and depth of perspective and leadership experiences in strategy, energy transition, and risk matters across the global energy and related sectors, their intersection with technology including artificial intelligence, change management and employee engagement. 

 

She previously led a strategy consulting firm advising leaders of companies, private equity firms and government entities primarily in energy and infrastructure and held positions of increasing responsibility at TD Bank Group, Credit Suisse, a private equity firm, and PwC. She earned a BS in Biology at Yale University, an M.P.A. in International Development at Harvard Kennedy School, and an M.B.A. at Harvard Business School. She is a member of Ascend Pinnacle and Women Corporate Directors. 
Conway Irwin

Conway Irwin is a senior director of S&P Global Energy, part of a dedicated research team that provides integrated climate and cleantech advisory research to the financial sector. Conway has more than a decade of experience in energy and commodities markets as a journalist and analyst in both the public and private sectors. Her work at S&P Global focuses on cleantech (solar, wind, hydrogen, batteries and storage) and on the broader energy transition. Conway holds an undergraduate degree from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and master’s degree from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. She lives in New York City.
Roman Kramarchuk

Roman Kramarchuk has been leading efforts to analyze the impacts of the energy transition – driven by policy changes and technology advancements - on the energy sector. With S&P Global Commodity Insights, and before that with Platts and PIRA, Roman launched and continues to develop analytics offerings providing outlooks around global/regional carbon pricing and environmental markets & policies. He had led and contributes to Future Energy Outlooks, advising clients on longer term energy market views (including reference case and low carbon scenarios), with special focus on clean energy technologies (i.e. hydrogen, electric vehicles/alternative transport, renewables, stationary storage, etc.).  Prior to joining PIRA, Roman was at the U.S. EPA, developing key power plant and industrial emissions regulations at the Clean Air Markets Division. With PG&E and before that at PA Consulting / PHB Hagler Bailly, he evaluated strategies regarding power sector fuel choice, capital investments and energy trading. Roman also worked on international projects to develop power markets and regulatory capacity in Ukraine, Armenia and India. At the U.S Federal Reserve Board, Roman analyzed trends in industrial production.  He has an M.P.P. from the Harvard Kennedy School and a B.A. in economics and B.S.E. in systems engineering from the University of Pennsylvania.
Renee Lau

Renee Lau is a Principal Financial Services Industry Specialist at Amazon Web Services, where she helps financial institutions translate generative AI and cloud capabilities into business value for capital markets. Prior to this role, she covered North American go-to-market strategy for GenAI across banking, insurance, and capital markets.


Before AWS, Renee spent two decades on the business side of financial services at Goldman Sachs and MUFG, spanning risk management, investment banking advisory, and structured products. She holds a BS in Operations Research from Cornell, an MS in Quantitative Methods from Baruch, and an MBA from Michigan.


Based in New York, she is an avid boulderer, competitive powerlifter, karaoke enthusiast, and Formula 1 fan.
Albana Theka

Albana Theka is the 60th President of the Financial Women’s Association (FWA), a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing the professional development of women across the financial services industry.


A seasoned finance and technology executive, Albana most recently served as Director of Analytics and Data Strategy at the Building Service 32BJ Health Fund, where she led cross-functional teams to deliver data-driven solutions that informed financial decisions and enhanced the member experience. Prior to that, she was Senior Director of Data and Analytics at New York City Health + Hospitals, where she spearheaded the creation of the Financial Sustainability Analytics Center of Excellence.


Earlier in her career, Albana spent over a decade at NYU Langone Health, holding leadership roles across finance, operations, and strategy. As the head of Financial Planning and Analysis, she managed complex, multi-million-dollar budgets and helped guide long-term financial strategy. She began her career in retail banking, spending five years at Ridgewood Savings Bank.


Albana holds a Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology from St. Francis College and an Executive MBA from St. Joseph’s College in Brooklyn, NY.


In addition to her professional pursuits, Albana is a passionate musician. She is the lead vocalist of the Albi Band, performing across venues in New York City.
Melissa Tuozzolo

Melissa Tuozzolo is a career Transaction Banker with 20 years’ experience spanning several of the world’s largest Global Transaction Banks. She has held roles spanning Product Management, Innovation & Emerging Payments, Institutional Market Management, and now global Client Service.


Melissa is a change agent that has redefined global standards for client service and account management in Transaction Banking. Since rejoining HSBC and assuming leadership of Global Payments Solutions’ (GPS) Client Service and Account Management function in 2023, she has executed a bold strategic vision: combining client-first service with a GenAI technology-led transformation and a culture of integrity.


Melissa brings with her deep payments and cash management expertise, alongside a relentless focus on client experience and a drive to digitize client journeys. She has held a number of leadership roles, including Head of International and Financial Institutions Payments at Bank of America where she oversaw the migration to ISO 20022, implementation of strategic SWIFT initiatives, the transition to real-time 24/7 payments and payments infrastructure modernization. Payment channels under her purview included high value wires, ACH and real-time payment schemes within the bank’s global footprint. Additionally, Melissa has held various Payments leadership positions at Citi including Global Head of Financial Institutions Market Management and Payments Industry and Advocacy Head. She and has previously also held positions at HSBC including North America Head of International Payments. 


In addition to her work experience Melissa has been an active member of the Payments Industry including the following previously held roles: US representatives on the Payments Market Practice Group (PMPG), Vice Chair of the SWIFT US National Group, SWIFT Payments Vision Group. She won the Woman in Payments “Change Agent” award in 2022 and was named Euromoney Transaction Banker of the Year 2025 (North America).
Sarah Wolfe

Sarah Wolfe is a Senior Economist and Strategist in Morgan Stanley Wealth Management covering macro and thematic investing. Prior to this role she was on the US Economics Research team at MS for five years. Sarah received her BA in International Studies and Economics from Johns Hopkins University and an MA in International Economics from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. She worked at the World Bank in Washington, D.C. while completing her master’s. Sarah is a visiting lecturer at Johns Hopkins University, and Chairs the Policy Survey Committee for the National Association for Business Economics (NABE) and Programming Committee for the New York NABE chapter (NYABE).